Amazon

With a foray into financial services, Amazon.com could disrupt the decades-old card payments system, a move that some say could save the retailer $250 million a year in swipe fees.

Readers opine on the possibility of an Amazon-JPMorgan Chase checking partnership, weigh in on the Crapo bill, applaud plans that would make the CFPB more of a backup regulator and more.

Disruptors would get a powerful new competitor if Amazon began offering checking accounts, but such a move would also validate the notion that fintechs are the future.

The online retailer wants to offer customers checking accounts but won’t become a bank; Quarles says the rule is too complex and “not working well.”

The negotiations between Amazon and big banks like JPMorgan Chase and Capital One to offer a checking-account-like product pose significant questions for regulators about the e-commerce giant pushing further into the banking space.

News that Amazon is courting banks to help it offer its own branded checking account raises major questions about which banks could be helped or hurt, who would control the relationship and how Amazon's partner(s) would make money.

As with most of the company's inventions, an Amazon checking account would more deeply embed customers into an Amazon ecosystem that provides an endless flow of data and efficiencies.

Amazon.com Inc. is in talks with JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Capital One Financial Corp. about offering the tech giant’s customers a product similar to a checking account.

Even if most consumers aren't leaving their plastic cards at home in favor of mobile wallets, the very idea of using a mobile wallet is no longer cutting-edge. But a few companies go the extra mile.

The Amazon Go store isn't just reinventing retail; the company's recent acquisitions of Ring and Blink indicate Amazon wants to reproduce its model of camera-fueled commerce in consumers' homes.

The rise of online and mobile commerce is forcing merchants to rapidly re-engineer their checkout options, while keeping an eye on emerging models that leverage artificial intelligence to streamline shopping — or bypass the store checkout process altogether, like Amazon Go.

AiFi uses artificial intelligence, sensors and cameras to outfit stores with a checkout-free system that can deploy without regard to the differences in store sizes.

There are practical lessons from Amazon's service model that can be applied elsewhere, writes Derek Corcoran, chief experience officer at Avoka.

Hot on the heels of the January debut of the first Amazon Go store in Seattle, the e-tailer is reportedly planning to open six more stores over the course of 2018. It's a surprising show of confidence from Amazon.

Amazon Go has swung far to the side of self-service as the company has maximized on technology and eliminated the value of face-to-face interactions. This is not be a recipe for success for every retailer, writes Jon Croy, co-founder and CMO of Point Inside.

The internet giant, SunTrust, Ally and other backers have invested $16 million in a new funding round for Greenlight Financial Technology, further blurring the lines between banks and tech companies.

Amazon will need to synchronize information collected across weight sensors, GPS, payments systems and surveillance to ensure critical data efficiently flows between the necessary systems with minimal latency, writes Keith McAuliffe, general manager for the financial services sector at Solace.

Grocery has been in Amazon’s sites for years. It’s very appealing because shopping volume and frequency is high, but the margins are low, and the logistics are difficult because of spoilage, writes Tom Caporaso, CEO of Clarus Commerce.

Companies like Amazon are increasing customer expectation, and traditional issuers could lose out if they don't respond, according to FIS' Sona Jepsen.

As owner of Whole Foods Market, Amazon is bringing one of its key strengths — swift product delivery — to its retail grocery store business.